St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1887-05-30
A TERRIBLE RIDE.
How an Heroic Hunter Won a
Brave Bride.

nv" all heroic hunter wen
Brave Bride.
Lovely LOta La Grange, cuddled up in
%moose and bear skins, and /, Dick Ions
dale, started from home one winter
tmorning in my ''Makawaska curiole." a
sleigh which is the perfection of loco
motion.
we were bound to merry sleighing
party at Windy Gap farm-OStenSibly to
nunt upon u vast scale, which ac-
counted for my two rifles and ammuni-
tion lying In the sleigh, and for the noble
mad curled up his great body at our feet
and aided to keep them warm.
'Hurrahn Through the keen, sonOr-
Gus air sleigh and horses bound along!
"Cllng-clangH go the Ginning bells.
"Crick-crack!' goes the long-thonged
whip, with sharp, CHEEKY significance.
Are you warm-Quite snug, dear
Lota!" said |, half-turning to look at the
rosy, exquisite face peeping forth with
so much furtive cOquetry from its encad-
rement of white cosy furs.
''Oh! so comfortable" she answered,
with a Nesting movement, and smile
which made my heart leap joyously up
ward.
had never familiarly as we had
grown, and was ''hOnest as the skin be-
tween your browS," as she was i'm fact)
i mad never said ''dear LOta' before,
ana the words were yet in mine ears
like sweet old burden. [ loved her
with all my heart and soul, but never
told it. yearned to tell her so now:
but thought it scarcely fair, not up to
the mark of my manhood, to take what
seemed an unfair advantage of the pro-
lection L was supposed to extend over
her. L magnanimOuSly resolved to wait
I'VE are very long, fancy" she said
after awhile; ''you have driven there
she cried, with the SuddenneSS of rev.
citation, lean we have lost the track?''
A cold chill seized me. l looked round
the horizon, but beheld no friendly sign;
1t was only circle gathering closer and
darker the while. Suddenly my brave
deerhound lifted up his head and ut
tered a low grOwl. The horses gave
startled swerve just as suddenly. A
strange, lugubrious, but appalling sound
came all at once from windward, wall
ing ike death cry-a prolonged, awful
grooming Observation-Disclosures the white
cleaning SNOW; and then it died away.
The horses halted trembling. Only
the ShlVerlng tinkle of the bells broke
over all.
Again the indescribably hideous and
lugubrlOuS sound broke forth, clearer,
nearer. 1t increased; it multiplied.
The horrible crescendo bowling, Shrek
ing and ravening was not that of the
wind this time.
'.Meriful God!' gasped Lota, ''the
wOlvesr'
. | never understood till that moment
what the concentrated essence of literal
deadly horror might mean. To have
lost the way was terrible enough But
the wolves and LOta! For all instant L
was numb and dumb.
a As the Internal howl rose lingeriHgly
again the horses darted away with
shrill neigh of fear, and l guided them
beginning to recover mySelf-in an
opposite direction.
~ II my good horses had gore on so adj
mirably at first, they sped eff now like
arrows from the bow, for the madness
of fear added wings 10 their speed, as
that os hunger did TO our painting pur-
sueyS.
L had two rifles, a revolver, ammuni-
ton, a spear aid Il wood Ratchet i'll the
sleigh. L conveyed my intention to
Lolita. go
'.Can you load these weapons with
Yes was the reply, and she loaded
them with true hunters skill. l took
one rifle, looked back, the pack was in
creasing. L fired and LOta loaded; and
one after another fell, TO be devOured by
their raVenOuS comrades: ard still the
horses sped on.
The accursed things were, for all this,
gaining ground. Doubts, fears, hopes,
trembling, were at my heart as turned
to The sweet girl whose life or death was
all to me, and said:
''LOta! if we die together, remember
that l loved you-none but you! l tell
it to you cow, if | never may again."
ELL me first" she whispered. ~
hear Your words-I echo them. You
Lave NY heart, Richard"
"Oh. Lota, best beloved, what mo-
ment to confess! And know not if 1
feel pain or gladness most"
There are now no secrets between
u.s. said Lota, smiling. Take this
rife; give me-the pistol; one kiss-so!
They come. Save me from them at any
cost"
| thought my ears would have split at
their dreadful yells, for they were now
upon us, opening out to surround us,
and though the horses held bravely on,
L dreaded every instant that sheer ter
ror would paralyZe them.
With lOlling tongues, eyes of flame,
hOarse, deep grOwlS, they had ceased to
bay and howl; they were closing in upon
us. remarked one huge monster in
advance OF the rest, his object evidently
being to leap into the sleigh from be-
hind. | fired-and missed him! The
next moment his huge bulk came
scrambling over the back his paws were
on me; his fiery breath on my cheek,
and | expected, as | murmured short
prayer, to feel the fangs of the abhor-
rent brute in my flesh.
A FASH crash IA gush of blood
and the creature tumbled backward. shot
through the throat to the spine by my
brave Lota! Then piled hatchet, and
split skull after skull, while the sleigh
tore on; but l was giving up all hope,
and turning round-oh, heaven! to spare
my darling more hideOuS fate-When
shots and shouts rang around, and troops
of dogs and hunters came swiftly to our
aid-and we were saved!
Providence had directed the sleigh to
Windy Gap; our firing reached the ears
of our friends, and brought them out in
hot haste 10 aid us. We were saved!
1t was the prelude to wedding, which
occurred soon afterward; and you may
be sure l never forget my fight withthe
Wolves, or the somewhat original but
apropos mode in which l told my love.